San Diego

Man to Be Imprisoned for Random Stabbings

A man convicted of random knife attacks on strangers in Chula Vista will spend nearly 30 years behind bars, a judge ruled Thursday.

Gerardo Bejar, 45, was sentenced Thursday to 26 years in prison for assault with a deadly weapon. Prosecutors say Bejar went on a violent crime spree, stabbing random people in Chula Vista in 2015.

Chula Vista Police credit body-worn video camera technology with the manโ€™s arrest. After surveillance video picked up Bejarโ€™s vehicle during one of the assaults, police were able to connect that evidence with prior body camera footage of Bejar made during a contact with him at a battery incident.

โ€œIt was a notable crime in terms of the fact that it was random,โ€ Lt. Fritz Reber said. โ€œItโ€™s pretty scary to have people randomly attacked. Usually, thereโ€™s a motive. And it was such a quick win and a good sentence and I think a good way to highlight something we use every day.โ€

In each of the attacks, Bejar jumped out of his car and stabbed a stranger. All three victims suffered non-life threatening injuries.

One of the charges involved an incident in 2014.

On November 17, a woman in a wheelchair on Industrial was stabbed in the back.

Six days later, a man was attacked while walking his dog behind the Target store on Broadway. The stabbing was caught on store surveillance cameras.

On December 1, Bejar stopped his car in the middle of the K Street, ran to a man walking the opposite direction and drove a knife into his back.

In addition to 26 years behind bars, Bejar was ordered to pay fines and restitution to the victims.

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